Fluorescent lampholder with selfaligning sealing means



Nov. 14, 1967 G. JHNSON 3,353,140

FLUORESCENT LAMPHOLDER WITH SELF-ALIGNING SEALING MEANS Filed April 26, 1965 A 24 442 FIG. 1.

INVENTOR. GE 0/265 JOHMSO/V Air raw United States Patent 3,353,140 FLUORESCENT LAMPHGLDER WITH SELF- ALIGNING SEALING MEANS George Johnson, Eronxville, N.Y., assignor to Kulka Electric Corporation, Mount Vernon, N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Apr. 26, 1965, Ser. No. 459,900 12 Claims. (Cl. 339-56) ABSTRACT OF THE DISLURE A lampholder assembly comprising a compressible lampholder and a non-compressible lampholder for mounting opposite ends of a fluorescent lamp, with each lampholder having an identical body portion, a separate socket member mounted within the body portion of the stationary lampholder in a position in which it is substantially limited to tilting movement by a member located between the socket member and the rear wall of the body portion to provide tilting movement of the socket member suificient to insure flush engagement of the latter with the end of the inserted lamp.

T his invention relates to improvements in lampholder assemblies for double ended gaseous discharge lamps of the fluorescent type, and in particular to lampholder assembly intended for outdoor installation and provided with means for establishing a water-tight seal about the terminal portions of the lamp and the interior of the lampholders.

Lampholder assemblies of the type contemplated herein are well known and widely used, such assemblies comprising a compressible lampholder and a stationary lampholder mounted on a support in face-to-face relationship, and having respective aligned socket portions for receiving the ends of the lamps and making electrical contact with the terminals thereof. Such lampholder assemblies have been adapted for outdoor installation, and it has recently been found desirable to mount resilient sealing rings around the socket openings for the purpose of preventing water, dust or other atmospheric impurities from reaching the lamp terminals or socket interior and interfering with the electrical contact between the lamp and the lampholders. Such sealing rings provide effective Weather protection for the installation provided that they are accurately aligned with the heads of the inserted lamp and are parallel thereto so as to engage the lamp heads in flush abutment.

It has been often found, however, in commercial in stallations that the lampholders are not properly mounted in precise alignment or in a precise parallel relationship so that they are slightly askew with respect to the inserted lamp and the sealing ring therefore does not provide a proper seal. In addition, lamps are occasionally encountered with their heads improperly set therein at slight angles to the lamp axis so that flush engagement of the sealing rings with the lam heads at both ends of the lamp cannot be achieved. This improper sealing does not occur at the end of the lamp engaging the compressible lampholder for the reason that the sliding, spring-biased plunger of the compressible lampholder has a sufficient amount of play to enable it to tilt sufficiently to make flush abutment with a lamp head which is out of alignment or parallel registry therewith. However, the sealing ring on the stationary lampholder is normally mounted on a rigid and immovable wall surface thereof, so that it cannot make such compensation.

Attempts have been made to solve this sealing problem by eliminating the stationary lampholder and providing two opposed compressible lampholders in the assembly,

See

one for each side of the lamp. This solution has, however, been found to be impractical since the installation of the lamp between the two compressible lampholders then requires the use of two hands, one to hold the lamp and move it to depress one lampholder, and the other to depress the opposite lampholder. Such an operation is often impossible where long lamps are employed, and in addition many fixtures are provided with a single access opening capable of admitting only one hand.

It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to solve the aforementioned sealing problem by providing a lampholder assembly including a compressible lampholder and a stationary lampholder in which the sealing ring of the stationary lampholder is mounted on a front surface thereof which is restrained from movement in the direction of the axis of the lamp but which may tilt to adjust for misalignment of the inserted lamp head.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a stationary lampholder of the character described which is capable of providing an efficient, weather-tight seal about the head of the lamp inserted therein even when said head of the inserted lamp initially engages the sealing ring at a slight angle, and therefore cooperates with the compressible lampholder of the assembly to provide a proper seal at both ends of the lamp.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a stationary lampholder of the character described which has a body portion identical to the body portion of the compressible lampholder and may be formed in the same mold, thereby effecting economies in the manufacture of the assembly.

In accordance with the invention herein there is provided a lampholder assembly consisting of a compressible lampholder and a stationary lampholder in which the stationary lampholder has a body including an internal recess and a separate socket member is contained within said recess. The socket member has a front wall located substantially in alignment with the front wall of said lampholder body and also mounting a sealing ring which surrounds a socket cavity therein. The rear surface of the socket member is spaced from the rear surface of the lampholder body recess and means are provided for retaining the socket member against longitudinal movement within the recess while at the same tme permitting slight tilting movement of the socket member within said recess so that its sealing ring may be brought into flush engagement with the head of an inserted lam which is initially misaligned therewith. In illustrative embodiments, this tilting movement is shown provided by a spring or by a pin extending between the rear surface of the socket member and the rear surface of the recess.

Additional objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent during the course of the following speci fication when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a lampholder assembly made in accordance with the present invention including a pair of lampholders with a lamp mounted therebetween, with portions of the assembly broken away and shown in section;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the compressible lampholder of the assembly, taken along line 22 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front plan view of the compressible lampholder of the assembly with a portion of the front plate thereof broken away to reveal inner construction;

FIG. 4 is a front plan view similar to FIG. 3 but with the front plate shown complete;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the compressible lampholder;

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the stationary lampholder of the assembly, taken along line 66 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a front plan view of the stationary lampholder shown in FIG. 1, with a portion of its front plate broken away;

FIG. 8 is a front plan view of the body or housing of both the stationary and compressible lampholders;

FIG. 9 is a sectional view, similarto FIG. 6, of a modified embodiment of stationary lampholder made in accord-. ance with the invention herein; and

FIG. 10 isa sectional view, similar to FIG. 6, of a modified embodiment of stationary lampholder made in accordance with the invention herein.

Referring in detail to the drawings and in particular to FIG. 1, there is shown a lampholder assembly comprising another compressible lampholder 10 and a stationary lampholder 12 mounted on the wall 14 of a fixture. Between lampholders 10 and 12 is mounted a lamp 16 of the fluorescent type, having a glass envelope 18 closed off at each end by respective contact heads 20 and22. The contact heads carry exposed lamp terminals (not shown) which extend within the socket portions of the lampholders 10 and 12.

The compressible lampholder 10, shown in FIGS. 15, comprises a molded body 24 made of electrical insulating material such as urea plastic and having a recess 26 therein for slidably receiving a plunger 28. The lampholder 10, as well as the lampholder 12, shown herein by way of illustration, are of the tombstone type, that is their body portions are elongated and arched at the tops in general resembling tombstones, and the socket portions therein are arranged perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the body.

The body portion 24 of compressible lampholder 10 has I an uninterrupted rear wall 30 and a front wall 32 which contains an opening 34 communicating. with the internal recess 26 and of the same size and shape as said recess.

The opening 34 is shown most clearly in FIG. Sand includes an arcuate upper portion 34a and an enlarged lower portion 34b, with opposed arcuate cut-away portions 340 forming shoulders 34d at the junctions of said upper and lower portions 34a and 34b.

The plunger 24 is cylindrical and has a semi-circular flange 36 projecting radially from the rear end portion thereof and extending about the lower half of its circumference. The plunger 24 may be inserted through the front wall opening 34 into the recess 26, the top half thereof fitting slidably through the arcuate upper portion 34a of said recess 34 and the correspondingly-shaped upper half of recess 26, and the end portions of the integral flange 36 fitting slidably within the cut-away portions 340. After, the plunger 24 has been assembled from the front of the lampholder, the enlarged lower portion 34b of opening 34 is covered by a metallic plate 38 affixed to the front wall of lampholder body 24 by a rivet 40. The plate 38, shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, has an arcuate upper edge portion38a which complements the arcuate upper portion 34a of front wall opening 34 to form a complete circular opening slidably receiving the cylindrical body of plunger 24, as shown in FIG. 4. The body of plate 28 adjacent this arcuate upper edge portion 38a overlies the flange 36 and acts as a stop to prevent plunger 24 from moving entirely outwardly of the lampholder body.

The shoulders 34d extend to the rear of the recess 26, as shown in FIG-S. 1 and 2, the end faces of flange 36 riding on said shoulders during sliding movement of the plunger 24 and being guided thereby. The shoulders 34d also serve to prevent rotation of plunger 24within recess 26.

A coiled compression spring 42 is located in recess 26 between the lampholder rear wall 30 and the rear wall of plunger 24. Spring 42 exerts a biasing force on plunger 24, normally maintaining it in the position shown in FIG. 2, in which it projects outwardly of recess 26 and in which the flange 36 is in engagement with the upper portion of plate 38.

As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a recessed cavity or socket portion 44 is formed in the front wall of plunger 24. The socket portion 44 is sized to receive the terminal portion of the lamp 16 projecting from contact head 20, and contains a pair of spaced electrical contacts 46 for engaging the exposed lamp terminals. The contacts 46 are connected to a respective pair of electrical leads 48 and 50 which, as shown in FIG. 2, pass through openings 52 in the body of plunger 28. As shown in FIG. 8, the front wall 32 of lampholder body 24 is formed with a recessed plunger 54 through which leads 48 and 50 extend to the exterior of the lampholder. The passages 54 are covered over by the plate 38.

As shown in FIG. 1, the lampholder 10 is mounted in upright position on a fixture wall 14, and for this purpose snap-locking mounting means are shown. The lampholder body 24 is formed with a mounting portion 60 integral with and depending from the bottom wall thereof, the mounting portion 60 being of lesser area than said bottom wall and being sized to fit snugly through a mounting opening 62 in fixture wall 14. A slot 64 is formed in the lower portion of lampholder rear wall 30 and communicates with an inclined slot 66 in the rear of mounting portion 60.. A spring clip 68 is mounted in slot 64 by means of rivet 40 and has a bent free end portion 70 extending to slot 66 andnormally biased outwardly of slot 66 as shown in FIG. 1. The plate 38 at its lower end has an integral,

forwardly-extending retaining flange 72 which underlies the bottom surface of fixture wall 14 when the mounting portion 60 is inserted within mounting opening 62,,while the spring clip 68 engages the opposite edge of said mounting opening to retain the lampholder in mounted position. The snap-locking structure just described forms no part of the present inventionand is described in detail in the copendiug application Serial No. 446,972 of George Johnson, filed April 9, 1965. It is to be understood that the lampholders shown herein may be mounted on the. fixture wall in any conventional manner, as by screw means or the like.

A sealing ring or gasket 74 of resilient material is affixed to the front face of plunger 24, as by cementing. The sealing ring 74 encircles the socket portion 44 and provides a water-tight seal between plunger 24 and the face of lamp head 20 to prevent moisture, dirt or the like from entering the socket 44 and encountering the lamp terminal portion contained therein.

Stationary lampholder 12 is mounted on fixture wall 14 in spaced relationship to lampholder 10 and in alignment there-with. Lampholder 12 also has a socket portion for receiving the opposite terminal portion of the lamp 16 carried by head 22. The lamp 16 is mounted by engaging the head portion 29 with plunger 24 and pressing said plunger inwardly of recess 26, against the force of spring 42, until the terminal ortion carried by the opposed head 22 can clear the front wall of stationary lampholder 12. The lamp is then turned into alignment with the lampholders, the terminal portion carried by head 22 is inserted into the socket portion of lamp holder 12, and the lamp is released, being held firmly between the lampholder by the biasing force of spring 42.

Conventionally, in lampholder assemblies of this type, the stationary lampholder is constructed differently from the compressible lampholder, having a hollow housing including a rigid front wall with the lamp socket formed therein. This requires separate molds for the stationary lampholder and compressible lampholder. A feature of the present invention is that both the stationary and compressible lampholders include identical body portions or holdings, so that both can be formed from the same mold and used interchangeably.

The lampholder assembly shown herein is intended primarily for outdoor installation, and for this purpose the sealing ring 74 is mounted on the compressible lampholder 10, as previously described and a similar sealing ring 76 is mounted on the stationary lampholder 12 to protect the opposite end of the lamp. For these Sealing rings to provide effective watertight seals, it is necessary that they be maintained truly parallel to the corresponding face of the lamp head so as to press against said face in flush abutment. In the mass production of fluorescent lamps, however, it often happens that the lamp heads are mounted slightly askew so that their end faces are not precisely normal to the lamp axis. In addition, it is a frequent occurrence in the installation of the lampholders in the fixture that the lampholders are improperly aligned or are mounted with their opposing faces not precisely parallel. Where the sealing ring is afi'ixed to the rigid wall of a stationary lampholder and any of the aforementioned aberrations occur at the stationary lampholder side of the assembly, then the sealing ring of the stationary lampholder will not rest flat against the lamp head and a tight seal will not be provided.

In the compressible lampholder 10, the slidably-mounted plunger 24 has a limited degree of turning movement in all directions, so that it is capable of compensating for inaccuracies in lamp head alignment, and will automatically position itself so that its sealing ring 74 makes flush contact with the head of an inserted lamp. The invention herein is concerned with a novel construction of the stationary lampholder L2 to effect a similar self-aligning action.

FIGS. 1, 6 and 7 illustrate a preferred form of stationary lampholder 12 which, as previously indicated, includes a body 24 identical to the body of compressible lampholder 10 previously described and illustrated in FIG. 8. The same reference numerals will, therefore, be applied to the body of lampholder 12 and its component parts. As heretofore described, the body 24 has an opening 34 in the front wall thereof which communicates with an internal recess 26 of the same size and shape.

Lampholder 12 also includes a separate cylindrical socket member 80 which is similar in size and shape to plunger 24, but differs in having no semi-circular flange 36 at the rear end. Instead, the socket member 80' has a pair of integral key members 82 and 84 which project from opposite sides thereof, each key member extending from the rear surface of socket member 83 to a point spaced slightly rearwardly of the front surface thereof, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 6. In assembling the socket member 80, the same is inserted from the front of lampholder 12 through front wall opening 34 into the recess 26. Again, the top circumferential portion of socket member 80 is received slidably within the arcuate upper portion 34a of opening 34 and the corresponding portion of recess 26, while the key members 82 and 84 are received in the cut-away portions 34c, with shoulders 34d preventing rotation of the socket member 80' within recess 126. A plate 38, identical to the plate 38 of compressible lampholder 10, is then secured to the front wall of body 24 of lampholder 12, and its arcuate upper edge portion 38a forms with the arcuate upper portion 34a of front wall opening 34 a circular opening which surrounds the front of socket member 80. The portion of plate 38 adjacent upper edge portion 34a overlies the ends of key members 82 and 84, retaining socket Inember 80 in mounted position within recess 26.

A coiled compression spring 86 is also employed to retain socket member 80 in mounted position, but to allow limited tilting movement thereof in a manner to be presently described. The spring 26 is shorter and of less strength than the spring 42 used in compressible lampholder 10. Spring 86 is located between the rear wall of the lampholder body and the rear face of socket member 80 and biases said socket member in a forward direction with the front edges of keys 82 and 84 pressing against the plate 38, as shown in FIG. 6. In this mounted position, the socket member 80 is wholly located within recess 26 and its front wall is substantially fiush with and parallel to the front wall 32 of lampholder body 24. The socket member 80 is held against sliding movement in- Wardly of the lampholder body by the closely-spaced turns of spring 86, but said spring provides a sufficiently resilient mount for the socket member to enable the latter to tilt slightly in all directions within recess 26. This limited tilting movement is also permitted by the slight spacing between the body of socket member 80 and the interior surfaces of the lampholder body, as well as the spacing between the keys 82, 84- and the adjacent lampholder body surfaces.

As shown in FIG. 7, the socket member 80 is formed with a socket recess 88 in the front wall thereof containing a pair of spaced contact members 90 for engaging the lamp terminals carried by head 22 and inserted within socket recess 88. The contact members 90 are connected to respective leads 92 and 94- which pass through an opening 96 in the socket member 80 and through the lampholder body in the manner previously described.

The lampholder 12 may be snap mounted in a mounting hole 98 in fixture wall 14 in the same manner as compressible lampholder 10, that is by means of plate flange 72 and spring clip 68, as shown in FIG. 1, or may be mounted in any other suitable manner. The sealing ring 74 is mounted on the front face of socket member 80, surrounding the socket recess 88, and projects a short distance forwardly of the front wall 38 of lampholder 12. Normally, the socket member 80 is so mounted that the front surface of sealing ring 76 is parallel to the front surface of the opposed sealing ring 74 and is in position to make flush contact with the face of head 22 of the inserted lamp 16. If, for any of the reasons mentioned previously, the ring 76 engages the head 22 at a slight angle, the socket member 80 will tilt within the body of lampholder 12 in the proper direction so that the ring 76 will rest flush against the end surface of lamp head 22 and will be pressed firmly thereagainst to provide an efficient seal under the force of biasing spring 42.

FIG. 10 illustrates a modified form of compressible lampholder 100 in which a pivot pin 102 is employed instead of spring 86. In the embodiment shown, the lampholder 100 has a body identical to the body 24 previously described except that pin 102 is formed integrally with the rear 'Wall thereof and projects forwardly into recess 26. Mounted in recess 26 is a socket member 104 identical to socket member 80 except that it is formed with a cavity 106 in its rear wall having an inner surface 108 engaged by the point of pin 102. The socket member has a socket portion formed in the front wall thereof and bordered by a sealing ring 110.

The socket member 104 has a pair of key members 112 and 114 identical to the key members 82 and '84 previously described. The front plate 38 overlies the front end of the keys 112, 114 and retains the socket member 104 within recess 26 with the cavity surface 108 in engagement with the tip of pin 102. The socket member 104 may thus tilt slightly in all directions about a pivot point provided by the tip of pin 102, when required to maintain sealing ring in alignment with the face of lamp head 22.

FIG. 9 illustrates another modified form of compressihle lampholder utilizing a pivot pin 122 to provide tilting of the socket member 124. In this instance, the pin 122 is formed integrally with the inner surface 108 of the cavity 106. The pin 122 projects rearwardly through recess 26 and its pointed free end engages the rear wall 30 of the lampholder body to provide a pivot point. In other respects, the lampholder construction is identical to that shown in FIG. 10.

While preferred embodiments of the invention have been shown and described herein, it is obvious that numerous omissions, changes and additions, may be made in such embodiments Without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

What I claim is:

1. A non-compressible lampholder for supporting one end of a fluorescent lamp having a head at each end 7 thereof and at least one terminal carried by the head at said one end, said lampholder, comprising a body, having an internal recess and a :front wall containing an opening communicating with said recess, a separate socket member located in said recess and spaced from the rear end thereof, said socket member having a front wall contain ing a socket cavity for receiving the terminal carried by the head of said lamp, said socket member front wall having an outer surface substantially aligned with the front wall of the lampholder body and adapted to abut the head of the inserted lamp, means retaining said socket member within said recess against forward translational movement thereof, and means engaging the rear end por-' tion of said socket member to retain the same against rearward translational movement and to provide a pivotal bearing for limited tilting movement of said socket member within said recess, whereby said outer surface of the socket member front wall may be brought into flush engagement with a misaligned head of the inserted lamp.

2. A non-compressible fluorescent lampholder com prising a body adapted to be mounted immovably upon a support surface, said body having a front wall containing a :front wall opening, an internal recess formed in said body in communication with said front Wall opening and having a rear surface, a socket member located within said recess and having a front wall containing a socket cavity sized to receive one end of a fluorescent lamp therein, a resilient sealing gasket mounted on the front wall of said socket member and surrounding said socket cavity, and means retaining said socket member in a mounted position within said recess for motion substantially limited to tilting, and with the front wall thereof substantially aligned with the front wall of said body, and with the rear surface thereof spaced forwardly of the rear surface of said recess, said retaining means including a fixed portion of said lampholder body overlying and en gaging a forwardly-facing portion of said socket member to restrain forward longitudinal movement of said socket member from its mounted position, and a member extending between the rear surface of said socket member and the rear surface of said recess and having a loose bearing engagement with at least one of said surfaces to restrain rearward longitudinal movement of said socket member and to provide a pivotal mount for said socket member whereby to permit limited tilting movement of the latter within said recess.

3. A fluorescent lampholder according to claim 2 in which said member is a spring seated at one end on the rear surface of said recess and at its other end on the rear end of said socket member.

4. A fluorescent lampholder according to claim 2 in which said member is a pin integral with the rear surface of said recess and extending forwardly therein, said pin having a pointed tip engaging a rear surface of said socket member.

5. A fluorescent lampholder according to claim 2 in which said member is a pin projecting rearwardly from said socket member and having a pointed tip engaging the rear surface of said recess.

6. A fluorescent lampholder comprising a body adapted to be mounted in upstanding position with the bottom surface resting upon a support surface, said body having a front wall perpendicular to said bottom surface and con taining a front wall opening, an internal :recessformed in said body in communication with said front wall opening and having a rear surface, a socket member located within said recess and having a front wall containing a socket cavity sized to receive one end of a fluorescent lamp therein, and means retaining said socket member in a mounted position within said recess with the front wall thereof substantially aligned with the front wall of said body, and with the rear surface thereof spaced forwardly of the rear surface of said recess, said retaining means including a plate affixed to the front wall of said body and partially closing off said front wall opening,

said plate overlying and engaging a forwardly-facing portion of said socket member to restrain forward longitudinal movement of said socket member from its mounted position, and a rigid member extending between the rear surface of said socket member and the rear surfaceof said recess and having a loose bearing engagement with one of said surfaces to restrain rearward longitudinal movement of said socket member and to provide a flexible mount for said socket member whereby to permit limited tilting movement of the latter withinrsaid recess,

7. A fluorescent lampholdercomprising a body adapted to be mounted in upstanding position with its bottom surface resting upon a support surface, said body having a front wall perpendicular to said bottom surface and containing a front wall opening, an internal recess formed in said body in communication with said front wall opening and having a rear surface, a socketmember located within said recess and having a front wall containing a socket cavity sized to receive one end of a fluorescent lamp therein, said socket member having a pair of spaced keys projecting radially from said socket member and extending longitudinally therealong, with the front, ends of the keys located adjacent the front wall of said socket member, and means retaining said socket member in a mounted position within said recess with the front wall thereof substantially aligned with the front wall of said body, and with the rear surface thereof spaced forwardly of the rear surface of said recess, said retaining means including a plate aflixed to the front wall of said body and partially closing off said front wall opening, said plate, overlying and engaging the front end of said keys on said socket member to restrain forward longitudinal movement of said socket member from its mounted position, and a rigid connecting member extending between the rear surface of said socket member and the rearsurface of said recess and having a loose bearing engagement with one of said surfaces to restrain rearward longitudinal movement of said socket member and to provide a flexible mount for said socket member whereby to permitlimited tilting movement of the latter within said recess.

8. A fluorescent lampholder according to claim 7 in which said body recess has shoulders slidably engaging said keys to prevent rotation of said socket member within said recess.

9. A fluorescent lampholder according to claim 7 in which said body recess has an upper portionclosely embracing the upper portion of said socket member and an enlarged lower portion sized to, contain the lower portion of said socket member and said keys projecting therefrom, and in which said front wall opening has a corresponding shape, said plate closing off the lower portion of said front wall opening and having an upper surface closely embracing the lower portion of said socket member.

10. A fluorescent lampholder according to claim 7 in which said connecting member is a pin formed integrally with the rear surface of said body recess and having a free end engaging the rear surface of said socket member.

11. A lampholder assembly comprising a compressible lampholder and a stationary lampholder mounted in spaced alignment and each having a socket portion for receiving the end of a lamp mounted therebetween, said stationary lampholder comprising a body having a recess therein, a separate socket member contained in said recess and spaced from the rear surface thereof, means holding said socket member in a position within said recess substantially against forward or rearward translation therein, said means including a member extending between the rear of said socket member and the rear surface of said recess and providing tilting movement of said socket member within said recess.

12. A lampholder assembly for mounting a fluorescent lamp having a head at each end thereof and terminals carried by said heads, said assembly comprising a stationary lampholder and a compressible lampholder adapted to be mounted on a support in face-to-face spaced relationship for receiving the lamp therebetween and each having a front Wall containing a socket cavity for receiving the terminals of the mounted lamp and a resilient sealing gasket surrounding the respective socket cavity for making flush sealing contact with the end of the respective lamp head, said stationary lampholder comprising a body having an internal recess and an opening in the front wall thereof, a separate socket member located in said recess and spaced from the rear end thereof, said socket member having a front wall containing said socket cavity and mounting said sealing gasket, means retaining said socket member within said recess against forward translational movement thereof and with the front wall thereof substanmeans engaging the rear end portion of said socket mem- 5 engagement with the misaligned head of an inserted lamp.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,716,739 8/1955 Lemmers 339-53 10 2,742,621 4/ 1956 Pistey 339-52 2,857,578 10/1958 Thomas 33955 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,044,970 11/ 1958 Germany.

RICHARD E. MOORE, Primary Examiner. 

11. A LAMPHOLDER ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A COMPRESSIBLE LAMPHOLDER AND A STATIONARY LAMPHOLDER MOUNTED IN SPACED ALIGNMENT AND EACH HAVING A SOCKET PORTION FOR RECEIVING THE END OF A LAMP MOUNTED THEREBETWEEN, SAID STATIONARY LAMPHOLDER COMPRISING A BODY HAVING A RECESS THEREIN, A SEPARATE SOCKET MEMBER CONTAINED IN SAID RECESS AND SPACED FROM THE REAR SURFACE THEREOF, MEANS HOLDING SAID SOCKET MEMBER IN A POSITION WITHIN SAID RECESS SUBSTANTIALLY AGAINST FORWARD OR REARWARD TRANSLATION THEREIN, SAID MEANS INCLUDING A MEMBER EXTENDING BETWEEN THE REAR OF SAID SOCKET MEMBER AND THE REAR SURFACE OF SAID RECESS AND PROVIDING TILTING MOVEMENT OF SAID SOCKET MEMBER WITHIN SAID RECESS. 